The silky-skilled forward was on the outer at the start of 2012, banished to the WAFL for failing to pass a skinfold test.
A year later, he has been one of the standouts in the club’s pre-season campaign and impressed greatly with a sublime intra-club match display recently.
Walters played three quarters before sitting off the final term of the intra-club, however, he remained heavily involved, barking out instructions to his younger teammates from the sidelines.
“I’m young as well, but the young boys that came to the club after me (that play forward), like Josh Mellington and Hayden Crozier, I feel I can offer a lot to,” he said.
The players Walters has offered his guidance to are the same ones that are gunning for the small forward spots he and Hayden Ballantyne currently occupy in the Freo side.
“I feel like myself and ‘Ballaz’ (Ballantyne) can add a bit more and help their game as well,” he said.
“The faster they can move along, the better for us.
“If me or ‘Ballaz’ get injured, we need someone that can play the role properly and fit into the team.”
Walters’ foot skills, coupled with those of fellow Indigenous stars Stephen Hill and Danyle Pearce further up the ground, were a highlight of Freo’s intra-club and NAB Cup round 1 game.
The 23-year-old believed the trio could form a special bond between midfield and attack this season.
“I think we can. With Danyle and ‘Hilly’ down the wing, coming down towards the forward line, I think they’ll be really hard to stop,” Walters said.
“It would be hard to send someone to ‘Hilly’, as teams did last year, and leave Danyle by himself. I reckon the tagging between them will change a hell of a lot this season.”
Walters has raised the bar this pre-season, determined not to fall into a hole with his fitness.
He’s appreciated the opportunity to have a ‘normal’ campaign, which has allowed him to focus on his skills and the team’s game plan.
“This time last year I wasn’t touching a footy,” Walters said.
“I was just running around an oval and you get sick of that.
“It’s good to train with the main group and learn the structures a whole lot quicker.”
And so far, he’s looking good to accomplish both goals he set out to achieve at the start of pre-season.
“(My first goal) was to keep the skinnies (skinfolds) low. I’m very low at the moment and they’ve told me not to lose any more, which is real good,” he said.
“The second goal was to continue playing good footy, start off in the team and stay there.”
